As of today, January 31, 2023

What happened like today in Greece and the world.

1504: France cedes Naples to Ferdinand II of Aragon, as part of the Treaty of Lyon.

1606: Guy Fawkes is executed for conspiring against Parliament and King James I of England, for the Gunpowder Plot.

1696: Amsterdam’s undertakers riot as authorities force changes to the funeral process, with their reaction being dubbed ‘The Raven Rebellion’.

1854: Greek revolutionary forces under Lieutenant Spyridon Karaiskakis, son of Georgios Karaiskakis, besiege and occupy Arta, which they are forced to abandon later, due to weather conditions and a lack of munitions.

1865: The US House of Representatives passes the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, abolishing slavery in America.

1891: Unrest by democrats turns into a revolution in Porto, leading to the creation of the Portuguese Republic in 1910.

1901: The play “Three Sisters” by Anton Chekhov premieres at the Moscow Art Theater.

1906: Magnitude 8.8 earthquake sweeps off the coast of Ecuador and Colombia, causing a tsunami and at least 1,000 deaths.

1910: The law officially abolishing slavery in China goes into effect. All adult slaves are turned into indentured laborers and youths under 25 are set free.

1914: The Great Powers inform the Greek government that they are also legally ceding the Aegean islands to Greece, as long as it withdraws its forces from Northern Epirus and the island of Sassona. Thus, Greek sovereignty is recognized in the Aegean islands, except Tenedos and Imbros, while Northern Epirus is granted to the newly formed Albanian state.

2008: The Member of Parliament, Kostas Koukodimos, in a handwritten letter announces his intention to become independent from New Democracy, due to his involvement in the Zahopoulos case. The ruling faction is left with 151 MPs.

2011: Egypt’s new government is formed, citing President Hosni Mubarak’s decree. As part of the reshuffle, the finance and interior ministers are changing, while other important ministers remain in place, such as the defense minister. Chaos at Cairo airport as thousands of tourists try to leave.

2020: The United Kingdom officially leaves the European Union at 23:00 GMT.

Births

1512 – Henry, King of Portugal

1543 – Tokugawa Ieyasu, Japanese shogun

1756 – Maria Theresa, Countess of Savoy

1769 – André-Jacques Garnerin, French balloonist and inventor

1785 – Charles Green, English aerostatist and inventor

1797 – Franz Schubert, Austrian composer

1884 – Theodor Heuss, German politician

1902 – Alva Myrdal, Swedish politician

1909 – Achilleas Apergis, Greek sculptor

1923 – Norman Mailer, American author and journalist

1929 – Rudolf Messbauer, German physicist

1932 – George Moutsios, Greek actor and singer

1933 – Bernardo Provenzano, Italian criminal

1935 – Kenzaburo Oe, Japanese writer

1937 – Philip Glass, American composer

1938 – Beatrix, Queen of the Netherlands

1940 – Kyriakos Charalambidis, Cypriot poet

1951 – Eija Ahvo, Finnish singer and actress

1960 – Željko Sturanović, Montenegrin politician

1964 – Jeff Hanneman, American guitarist

1965 – George Gasparis, Greek basketball player

1971 – Dimitris Markos, Greek football player

1973 – Portia de Rossi, Australian actress

1976 – Traianos Dellas, Greek football player

1981 – Justin Timberlake, American singer

1982 – Elena Paparizou, Greek singer

1984 – Suzana Vougioukli, Greek singer

1984 – Zak Stefanou, Greek songwriter

1985 – Maria Kalomira Karol Saranti (better known as Kalomira), Greek singer

Deaths

1216 – Theodore II Ireneikos, Patriarch of Constantinople

1330 – John I, Marquis of Namur

1580 – Henry, King of Portugal

1606 – Guy Fawkes, English conspirator

1828 – Alexander Ypsilantis, Greek prince

1903 – Nikolaos Mavrokordatos, Greek politician

1933 – John Galsworthy, English writer

1936 – Georgios Kondylis, Greek military and politician

1944 – Jean Girondoux, French writer

1982 – Panagiotis Bratsiotis, Greek theologian and academic

1984 – Konstantinos Triantaphyllou, Greek lawyer and politician

1991 – Kostas Mountakis, Greek musician

1999 – Vassilis Bougiouklakis, Greek actor

2007 – Kirka (née Kirill Babichin), Finnish singer

2011 – Kaiti Lampropoulou, Greek actress

2015 – Udo Latek, German football coach

2015 – Elizabeth Scott, American actress

2015 – Richard von Weissecker, German politician

2016 – Benoit Violier, French chef.